The Algorithm as Witness: Reimagining Holocaust Memory in the Digital Age
Oct 18, 2024
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Todd Presner, Chair of UCLA’s Department of European Languages and Transcultural Studies, delves into the intersection of ethics and technology in Holocaust memory. He discusses how digital tools are reshaping historical interpretation and argues for a new ethical framework for remembrance. The conversation explores the role of algorithms in shaping collective memory, highlighting projects like Dimensions in Testimony. Presner emphasizes the importance of balancing personal narratives with digital archives to enhance engagement while maintaining authenticity.
The transition from survivor narratives to digital testimony necessitates a critical examination of how technology influences our understanding of Holocaust memory.
Collaborative efforts in digital humanities allow for an enriching exploration of Holocaust narratives by incorporating diverse insights and innovative methodologies.
Addressing algorithmic ethics is crucial as computational tools reshape historical interpretation, emphasizing the need for ethical frameworks in analyzing personal and collective experiences.
Deep dives
Exploring the Digital Age and Holocaust Memory
The conversation starts by examining the shift in Holocaust memory as we transition from the survivor generation to a digital context. As survivors age, access to their testimonies will increasingly rely on digital technologies, highlighting the need to address how these tools shape our understanding of history. The integration of computational methods prompts essential inquiries about ethical considerations in studying Holocaust memory, including how to avoid reducing survivors to mere data points. This shift calls for a reconsideration of how we engage with history, emphasizing the importance of ethical frameworks in utilizing technological advancements.
Collaborative Approaches in Digital Humanities
The podcast discusses the collaborative nature of Todd Presner's book, emphasizing the involvement of students in the Digital Humanities Program in its creation. This collaborative effort enhances the exploration of tools and methodologies in visualizing and interpreting Holocaust narratives. By crowd-sourcing knowledge and expertise, the work fosters a diverse array of insights, showcasing how collective engagement enriches the understanding of complex historical events. The use of augmented realities, like embedding QR codes in the book for immediate interaction with the data, is a notable innovation that encourages active reader involvement.
Ethics of the Algorithm and Historical Context
Presner's discussion on algorithmic ethics highlights an important aspect of technological engagement: the responsibility to critically evaluate how algorithms influence historical interpretation. In the context of Holocaust memory, ethical concerns arise surrounding the transformation of individual experiences into abstract data points. The conversation contrasts traditional ethical approaches with machine-informed ethics, raising questions about how algorithms operate and how they shape decision-making. This perspective emphasizes a need for ethical frameworks that consider the nuances of human experience in light of computational tools.
New Questions Raised by Digital Tools
The integration of digital technologies encourages the formulation of new research questions surrounding Holocaust memory and testimony. By utilizing natural language processing and other computational methods, scholars can extract nuanced narratives that may have been overlooked in traditional scholarship. The potential to analyze large sets of testimonies enables the identification of patterns and individual acts of resistance, enriching our understanding of survivors' experiences. This approach expands the scope of Holocaust research, fostering a more comprehensive engagement with diverse perspectives and underrepresented voices.
Future Directions in Holocaust Scholarship
Looking ahead, the podcast envisions Holocaust scholarship embracing integrated methodologies that combine digital tools with historical analysis. The anticipated evolution of digital provenance will require scholars to account for the authenticity of data and the decision-making processes of algorithms. This shift holds the promise of democratizing historical research and deepening public engagement with complex narratives. The ongoing exploration of AI's role in cultural heritage will also necessitate careful ethical considerations to ensure that the past is honored and accurately represented.
In this episode of "Technically Human," I bring you a conversation with one of the great thinkers working at the intersection of ethics and technology, Professor Todd Presner, for an episode about his new book, Ethics of the Algorithm: Digital Humanities and Holocaust Memory. In the conversation, we talk about new direction in Holocaust memory and scholarship, how technologies are enabling new approaches, questions, and interpretations of major historical events, and how digital technologies might help us imagine a new ethics of interpretation of history and memory.
Dr. Todd Presner is Chair of UCLA’s Department of European Languages and Transcultural Studies. Previously, he was the chair of UCLA’s Digital Humanities Program (2011-21), and from 2011-2018, he served as the Sady and Ludwig Kahn Director of the Alan D. Leve Center for Jewish Studies. He holds the Michael and Irene Ross Chair in the UCLA Division of the Humanities. His research focuses on European intellectual and cultural history, Holocaust studies, visual culture, and digital humanities. Dr. Presner’s newest book was published with Princeton University Press: Ethics of the Algorithm: Digital Humanities and Holocaust Memory (Fall 2024).
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